While most countries across Europe are seeing a resurgence in coronavirus cases, Sweden is not.
Image: The streets of Stockholm are quiet but not deserted. After a long, dark Scandinavian winter, the coronavirus pandemic is not keeping Swedes at home even while citizens in many parts of the world are sheltering in place and won’t find shops or restaurants open on the few occasions they are permitted to venture out. (AP Photo/David Keyton, File)
Sweden did not impose strict limits on citizens’ rights. People went to work and ate at restaurants and faced very few restrictions. Children in lower grades attended school, but high schools and universities utilized distance learning.
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Businesses stayed open. Those who could work from home were advised to do so, but no laws were passed and no orders were given telling people to stay home. The government did ask it’s citizens to refrain from non-essential travel and asked people to practice social distancing and hand washing. They restricted visits to nursing care facilities, and Sweden prohibited gatherings of 50 or more.
People in Sweden aren’t likely to wear masks either. Sweden’s top infectious disease expert, Anders Tegnell, resisted recommending face masks for the general population. Anders has repeatedly expressed skepticism that face masks will control virus outbreaks.
It is very dangerous to believe face masks would change the game when it comes to COVID-19.”
Anders Tegnell, chief epidemiologist at Sweden’s Public Health Agency,
Sweden has been working towards herd immunity, a concept where so many people contract the virus that the population develops natural resistance without the need for a vaccine.
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The “herd immunity” concept is an approach in stark contrast to Sweden’s neighbors like Finland, which banned gatherings of 10 or more, declared a state of emergency, and closed all schools, restaurants, cafes, and bars.
India imposed a lockdown for 1.3 billion people, and Germany banned crowds of two or more people.
Now Sweden’s policies look like they may have worked. Sweden is doing more and more testing as they see cases continue to decline.
As of September 16th World Meters reports that Sweden has had 87,345 coronavirus cases along with 5,851 deaths. As you can see, new cases and deaths have remained steady and near-flat: